Emulsion aggregation (EA) toner particles may comprise a polyester resin. The polyester resin may be produced from monomers derived from renewable resources. However, the range of bio-based, commercially available diols and diacids is limited, and the available chemical structures are mostly small, aliphatic, linear molecules with low carbon-oxygen ratios. When used to prepare polyesters for toner, such diacids and diesters yield toner with low glass transition temperature (Tg) and high equilibrium moisture content, which adversely affect charging and fusing properties of the resulting toners. Petroleum-based monomers, such as, terephthalic acid (TA), naphthalene dicarboxylic acid (NDC) and cyclohexene dicarboxylic acid (CHDA) are thus often included in resin formulations. While not, “green,” those monomers are hydrophobic (high carbon-oxygen ratio) and structurally rigid, bringing charge and fusing properties close to existing polyester toner specifications.
There remains a need for bio-based monomers that share those advantageous physico-chemical properties.